Saturday’s Ontario University Athletics (OUA) women’s basketball semi-final, hosted by U of T, was a thrilling match between the Varsity Blues and Laurentian Voyageurs. The two teams had split their matches during the regular season, but the Voyageurs suffered a 76-47 trouncing in their last regular-season encounter with the Blues.
With players wrestling for jump balls and diving headfirst onto the floorboards, one spectator commented that this semi-final was what the NBA should look like. Despite a hard-fought contest between the two teams, Laurentian’s Voyageurs upset U of T by defeating them 70-58 to end the Blues’ basketball season.
The first half of the game was uneven and chaotic. Riddled with loose ball fouls, unconverted fast breaks, and careless turnovers, the game seemed more like a schoolyard scrimmage than university basketball.
Within five minutes of the end of the first half, however, the two teams began to turn up the heat. After overcoming a slow start, where they trailed 12-2, the Blues rallied from behind to lead 29-26 at the end of the first half. Cheers from the crowd began to match the Blues’ ferocity, as initial spectator apathy became a deafening roar.
Blues forward Joanna Chehade and pivot Christina Cho dominated the boards, racking up 19 rebounds combined. Guard Julia Gaffield was a fierce and dominating presence on the floor and was responsible for helping the Blues overcome the five-point deficit two minutes before the end of the first half.
After halftime the Voyageurs blew the game wide open with quick scoring by Laurentian guard Tierney Hoo. Hoo commanded the floor with high intensity and dynamic ball handling.
The Voyageurs matched the Blues point-for-point, answering tough shots with quick steals and scoring on fast breaks. The Blues held the lead 50-49 during the second half, but only briefly, as they struggled with the Voyageurs’ stifling full-court press and rapid transition defense.
The Blues were unable to battle back from their frustration after a controversial flagrant foul by U of T’s Vanessa Norbrega late in the game. Meanwhile, the Voyageur offence was impressive, particularly the three-point shooting of guard Brianne Henry, who shot 50 per cent from three-point range.
Hoo scored a game high 19 points in the Laurentian victory, Henry contributed 18, and teammate Cassandra Carpenter added 13.
Despite four of U of T’s players scoring in double digits, the Blues were unable to contain the Voyagers once past the team foul limit. The Voyageurs were perfect from the free throw line, making ten-straight shots in the second half.
The Blues defence slowly unraveled, bringing a disappointing playoff finish to U of T fans. The once-resounding roar from the U of T crowd became dismayed silence as the scoring gap became 62-56 with 50 seconds to play. In the end, U of T’s Nobrega, Chehade, and Cho had netted 13 points each, with Gaffield scoring 10. One U of T fan shrugged and responded hopefully, “There’s always next season.”
